CBS Announces Big Brother: All-Stars

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Cast members return to compete on the reality show's 7th season.

By Eric Goldman

Among CBS reality shows, Big Brother has never achieved the mega-hit status of Survivor or the critical acclaim and awards of The Amazing Race. Still, Big Brother has been a solid ratings grabber for the network for the last six years, gaining its own loyal following in the process. Now, the network has announced that when the reality series returns in its traditional summer slot this year, it will be with an All-Stars version.

Like in previous seasons, the show will feature a group of people living sequestered in a fabricated house together, competing for a $500,000 prize. However, this time contestants will be familiar and popular faces from the shows first six seasons. One new aspect is that the audience will help decide who will be participating in the show: From a pool of 20 former cast members, 12-14 will be selected to actually enter the house, based on votes from the audience.

In an interview with Variety, Big Brother executive producer Allison Grodner hinted at other surprises, noting, "This will be the most interactive Big Brother yet. Viewers will be getting involved more than in the past." 24-hour a day online video feeds from inside the Big Brother house continue to be a popular aspect of the show. Through the years, the show has also introduced several new twists and variations on voting methods.

CBS already had success with an All-Stars edition of Survivor in 2004. With Big Brother: All-Stars on the way, here's hoping that The Amazing Race: All-Stars is next.